Posted on 04/20/2019 5:49:47 PM PDT by pcottraux
By Philip Cottraux
It’s been a long time since I’ve weighed in on the creation controversy, mostly because I hate how divisive it is. But I want to start a series critiquing Young Earth Creationism on a particular aspect that doesn’t get a lot of attention: the clumsy and unscientific way it tries to factor dinosaurs into the creation account.
Smart aleck atheists sometimes demand explanations why the Bible doesn’t mention dinosaurs, implying Genesis is an ancient fairy-tale that gets Earth’s origins wrong. This isn’t a problem for old-earth interpretations, but the Young Earth Creationist claims that adding up the generations from Adam to today amounts to about 6,000 years since Adam and Eve. Obviously this is at odds with science’s claims that the earth is 4 billion years old.
Now to be fair, I can’t help but wonder why people immediately fixate on dinosaurs instead of, say, trilobites or some other extinct animal from eons ago. But nevertheless, Young Earth Creationist such as Answers in Genesis or the Institute for Creation Research depict dinosaurs living at the same time as humans. They were even present on Noah’s ark and the fossils we’ve found around the world are a result of the great flood, not an extinction event from 65 million years ago.
As evidence that humans and dinosaurs coexisted, they then point to two alleged references to prehistoric beasts in the Bible, both occurring at the end of Job: the Behemoth in chapter 40 and the Leviathan in 41. Job is the oldest book in the Bible, predating Genesis by a few centuries at least, and God was describing living creatures he was familiar with, right?
Now let me be clear; this series is not about the age of the earth. While I’m personally not a Young Earth Creationist, my aim here is to specifically address Job 40 and 41, because the creatures described here are not dinosaurs. My goal is always to help people understand the Word of God better. Personally, I used to believe it, too; but in retrospect, for no other reason than I really wanted dinosaurs to be in the Bible. How cool would that be? But as disappointing as it is, gaining a proper understanding of these passages will help falsify bad interpretations of scripture.
So what’s actually going on here? You probably already know the story well. Job is a righteous man, but God agrees to allow Satan to attack him to test his faithfulness; Job loses all his possessions, his children are killed, and he’s smitten head-to-toe with boils. His wife tells him to curse God and die and his friends shame him for whatever wrong-doing must have put him in such a pitiful state.
While Job remains faithful, he questions why this is happening to him. And in the final chapters, the Lord appears in a whirlwind, essentially chastising him and his friends that they are in no place to tell Him how to run the universe: Where was thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? Declare, if thou hast understanding (Job 38:4).
In chapters 40 and 41, God describes two mighty beasts, the Behemoth and the Leviathan. Young Earth Creationists speculate that Behemoth was a sauropod (a long-necked dinosaur such as Brachiosaurus or Apatosaurus). Old Earth Creationists usually counter that this was probably an ox or a hippopotamus, to which the Young Earthers will point to verse 17: his tail like a cedar.
Both are actually wrong. To get to the truth of this passage, we have to dig into an uncomfortable subject for a lot of evangelical Christians: Ancient Near Eastern context. One of the challenges for the Bible scholar is to drop a modern, scientific mindset (which is heavily influenced by Greek philosophy, more so than most people realize) and try to read the oldest books in the Bible the way Semitic people in the fifteenth century BC would have understood them.
If the Behemoth was a sauropod, I find it suspicious that it never mentions the creature having a long neck. But the root word for behemoth, behema, is in fact Hebrew for a beast of burden, usually indicating an ox. In fact, verse 15 even says he eateth grass as an ox (if you couldn’t tell from their long necks, sauropods ate leaves from tree tops).
What then, of the tail like a cedar tree? Let’s look at verse 16 in its entirety: He moveth his tail like a cedar: the sinews of his stones are wrapped together. The very peculiar verb move actually indicates “to extend;” likewise, in the following line, the King James Version translates the Hebrew word bahad as “stones.” Some translations use “thighs” instead, but the implication is clear; the verse is a euphemism for the creature’s reproductive organs.
Now you may be wondering why God would brag about how well-endowed an ox is. But this is where the historical context is necessary; Behemoth wasn’t an actual animal, but a mythical beast placed here in the story as a literary device to drive the point home.
The nearby kingdom of Ugarit had a language and culture most resembling Israel, so it’s very helpful to compare Ugaritic texts with Semitic writings to examine the cultural influence. Compare Job 40 and 41 to the following:
“Surely I lifted up the Dragon.
I destroyed the twisting Serpent,
The Tyrant with the seven heads
I destroyed Arshu, beloved of El,
I put an end to El’s calf Attik.”
Just like in Job, “The calf of Attik” (a bull deity), is paired with a “twisting serpent with seven heads,” which parallels the Biblical Leviathan. Fertility idols were often depicted as cow-like in the ancient Near East; recall the Canaanite god Molech, to whom worshipers would offer up their own children as sacrifices.
I can already hear the protest. Why would God reference two pagan deities (Behemoth and Leviathan) in His final speech to Job? And furthermore, he seems to describe Behemoth in a positive light, even says that the creature was made “at the same time” as Job. Behold now behemoth, which I made with thee…He is the chief of the ways of God: he that made him can make his sword to approach unto him (verses 15, 19). But this isn’t the only instance of the Lord referencing gods of other cultures. Exodus 12:12: For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the Lord. Each plague was specifically designed to target an Egyptian idol; for example, the Egyptians would cry out to Seth, god of storms to stop the hailstones mingled with fire. This doesn’t necessarily mean the gods of Egypt were real, but that the God of Israel was proving Himself to their worshipers. And the magicians did so with their enchantments to bring forth lice, but they could not: so there were lice upon man, and upon beast. Then the magicians said unto Pharaoh: this is the finger of God: (Exodus 8:18-19).
An important principle to remember is that God meets people where they are in history and speaks to them in a language they’ll understand. At this point He’s explaining His mastery over creation. Job certainly would have been familiar what Behemoth symbolized to neighboring kingdoms: the unfathomable wonders of the animal world. In the previous chapter, God had listed goats, oxen, peacocks, grasshoppers, and eagles. Then in chapter 40, he uses the Behemoth as a symbolic summary to demonstrate that He rules over what man cannot tame.
This kind of poetic symbolism is common in ancient texts and is crucial to properly interpret early Biblical writings. Unfortunately, Behemoth isn’t the only creature mistakenly referred to as a dinosaur in a misguided attempt to apply literalism to non-literal passages. And if you thought the back story behind Behemoth was complicated, wait till we get into Leviathan next week!
(For more information I didn’t have time to go into, check out this video from Ben S: Why Behemoth Isn’t a Dinosaur).
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So let it be written...
Maybe not dinosaurs, but something more like fire breathing dragons.
Job 41
12 “I will not keep silence concerning his limbs,
or his mighty strength, or his goodly frame.
13 Who can strip off his outer garment?
Who would come near him with a bridle?
14 Who can open the doors of his face?
Around his teeth is terror.
15 His back is made of rows of shields,
shut up closely as with a seal.
16 One is so near to another
that no air can come between them.
17 They are joined one to another;
they clasp each other and cannot be separated.
18 His sneezings flash forth light,
and his eyes are like the eyelids of the dawn.
19 Out of his mouth go flaming torches;
sparks of fire leap forth.
20 Out of his nostrils comes forth smoke,
as from a boiling pot and burning rushes.
21 His breath kindles coals,
and a flame comes forth from his mouth.
22 In his neck abides strength,
and terror dances before him.
23 The folds of his flesh stick together,
firmly cast on him and immovable.
You might enjoy this...
The Age of the Universe
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/religion/3051495/posts
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1576941/posts
Philip needs to go visit Glen Rose, Texas. I did about 20 years ago... Paleontology is way out of my field so what do I know. I only saw what were obviously human tracks intermingled with what looked like what a textbook calls tridactyl tracks.
Nope, not buying this at all. Read Henry M. Morris’ account of this passage in his books. It is more lucid and logical than this. Show me the proof for history or age beyond human history. If the earth is billions of years old, why? What was accomplished? For what purpose? There should be millions of dead stars, where are they? Where are all the bodies in the millions of years man has existed? I am from Missouri....
Why not?
Nature doesn’t have to obey man’s preconceptions.
Nature? Mother nature? That nature? What is your point?
Canst thou draw out leviathan with an hook? or his tongue with a cord which thou lettest down? (Job 41:1)
Behemoth wasn’t an actual animal, but a mythical beast placed here in the story as a literary device to drive the point home.
This is simply as fallacious as liberal RC scholarship which effectively has Christ referring to a fable by invoking the story of Jonah. In contrast, God is invoking His power, wisdom and majesty in the light of creation, and which makes relegating Behemoth ("which I made with thee") and Leviathan to be mythical beasts absurd, for invoking mythical beasts as evidence of the creators power and wisdom is absurd.
And whether you like it or not, sometimes your articles come across as being the product of an elitist who seeks to make a name for himself (and pimp your "Depths of Pentecost" blog) by engaging in dubious corrections, as in His Hand is Stretched Out Still (though such seem to be in the minority).
Leviticus 11:19 mentions types of birds utilizing the Hebrew “tinshemet”: ‘tuf, nun, shin, mem, tut’...then uses the same word referring strictly to “reptiles” in verse 30.
I’ve long found that interesting considering more modern paleontological evidence linking certain Ornithischian dinosaurs to modern birds.
What exactly is your point? It doesn't matter whether this was a mythical creature, a dinosaur, or some other animal. The text all read the same no matter how it is construed.
1 Timothy 6:3-5 If anyone advocates a different doctrine and does not agree with sound words, those of our Lord Jesus Christ, and with the doctrine conforming to godliness, he is conceited and understands nothing; but he has a morbid interest in controversial questions and disputes about words, out of which arise envy, strife, abusive language, evil suspicions, and constant friction between men of depraved mind and deprived of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain.
Bless his heart.
Are you serious? How can describing creating and ruling over mythical beasts demonstrate God's power and wisdom? Might as well argue "Behold now the Centaur, which I made with thee..." And since this sppdly mythical beast was made with Job, you might as well go all the way and argue that Job was mythical.
Young Earth Creationists speculate that Behemoth was a sauropod (a long-necked dinosaur such as Brachiosaurus or Apatosaurus).
You mean some YECs, may be, as citation needed, while others argue simply for large animal (see https://creation.com/could-behemoth-have-been-a-dinosaur).
Let’s look at verse 16 in its entirety: He moveth his tail like a cedar: the sinews of his stones are wrapped together. The very peculiar verb move actually indicates “to extend;”
Another misleading argument, for many words have shades of meaning, and extend is guesswork. Here is a extended discussion on it.
Bkmk
So this guy is saying God was referring to mythical beasts, here. I don’t buy that at all. Just because he speaks of false gods in several places? No sir! Your example is even better than the one he’s using. As I said, bless his heart.
Atomic bombs aren’t in the Bible either. That doesn’t mean they don’t exist.
L
Behemoth could have been an Aurochs or its wilder predecessor. And other beasts could be, while in these present times unknown, scary critters generally feared and avoided in that time. No sense to call them mythical, as that would not have been convincing.
And Damascus will be destroyed and consumed by fire too. one day in the future....
It easily can be explained as being a large animal that fit the description but which became extinct due to real Climate Change.
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